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THE SECOND DAY.
(Continued.)
CHAPTER VIII.
FISHING AT THE TOP, CONTINUED---FLIES FOR THE END OF MAY, AND FOR THE FOLLOWING MONTHS, TILL DECEMBER; CONTAINING, UNDER MAY, INSTRUCTIONS WHEN TO DAPE WITH THE STONE-FLY.
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Viat. So, sir, I am now ready for another lesson, so soon as you please to give it me.
Pisc. And I, sir, as ready to give you the best I can. Having told you the time of the Stone-fly's coming in, and that he is bred of a cadis in the very river where he is taken, I am next to tell you, that,
13. This same Stone-fly has not the patience to continue in his crust, or husk, till his wings be full grown; but so soon as ever they begin to put out, that he feels himself strong (at which time we call him a Jack) squeezes himself out of prison, and crawls to the top of some stone; where, if he can find a chink that will receive him, or can creep betwixt two stones, the one lying hollow upon the other (which, by the way, we also lay so purposely to find them) he lurks there till his wings be full grown, and there is your only place to find him; and from thence doubtless he derives his name:---though, for want of such convenience, he will make shift with the hollow of a bank, or any other place where the wind cannot come to fetch him off. His body is long, and pretty thick, and as broad at the tail, almost, as in the middle; his colour a very fine brown, ribbed with yellow, and much yellower on the belly than the back: he has two or three whisks also at the tag of his tail, and two little horns upon his head: his wings, when full grown, are double, and flat down his back, of the same colour but rather darker than his body, and longer than it; though he makes but little use of them, for you shall rarely see him flying, though often swimming and paddling, with several feet he has under his belly, upon the water, without stirring a wing. But the drake will mount steeple-high into the air; though he is to be found upon flags and grass too, and, indeed, everywhere high and low near the river; there being so many of them in their season, as, were they not a very inoffensive insect, would look like a plague: and these drakes (since I forgot to tell you before, I will tell you here) are taken by the fish to that incredible degree, that, upon a calm day, you shall see the still-deeps continually all over circles by the fishes rising, who will gorge themselves with those flies, till they purge again out of their gill; and the trouts are at that time so lusty and strong, that one of eight or ten inches long will then more struggle and tug, and more endanger your tackle, than one twice as big in winter: but pardon this digression.
This stone-fly, then, we dape or dibble with, as with the drake, but with this difference; that whereas the green-drake is common both to stream and still, and to all hours of the day, we seldom dape with this but in the streams, for in a whistling wind a made-fly in the deep is better---and rarely but early and late, it not being so proper for the mid-time of the day; though a great grayling will then take it very well in a sharp stream, and here and there a trout too, but much better towards eight, nine, ten, or eleven, of the clock at night, at which time also the best fish rise, and the later the better, provided you can see your fly; and when you cannot, a made-fly will murder, which is to be made thus: the dubbing of a bear's dun with a little brown and yellow camlet very well mixed; but so placed, that your fly may be more yellow on the belly and towards the tail underneath, than in any other part; and you are to place two or three hairs of a black cat's beard on the top of the hook, in your arming, so as to be turned up, when you warp on your dubbing, and to stand almost upright, and staring one from another; and note that your fly is to be ribbed with yellow silk; and the wings long, and very large, of the dark gray feather of a mallard.
14. The next May-fly is the Black-fly; made with a black body, of the whirl of an ostridge-feather, ribbed with silver-twist, and the black hackle of a cock, over all; and is a killing fly, but not to be named with either of the other.
15. The last May-fly, that is of the four pretenders, is the little yellow May-fly; in shape exactly the same with the green-drake, but a very little one, and of as bright a yellow as can be seen; which is made of a bright yellow camlet, and the wings of a white-gray feather dyed yellow.
16. The last fly for this month, and which continues all June; though it comes in in the middle of May, is the fly called the Camlet-fly; in shape like a moth, with fine diapered, or water-wings, and with which, as I told you before, I sometimes used to dibble; and grayling will rise mightily at it. But the artificial-fly, which is only in use amongst our anglers, is made of a dark-brown shining camlet, ribbed over with a very small light-green silk, the wings of the double-gray feather of a mallard; and 'tis a killing fly for small fish. And so much for May.
JUNE.
From the first to the four-and-twentieth, the green-drake and stone-fly are taken, as I told you before.
1. From the twelfth to the four-and-twentieth, late at night, is taken a fly, called the Owl-fly, the dubbing of a white weasel's tail, and a white-gray-wing.
2. We have then another dun, called the Barm-fly, from its yeasty colour; the dubbing of the fur of a yellow-dun cat, and a gray wing of a mallard's feather.
3. We have also a Hackle with a purple body, whipped about with a capon's feather.
4. As also a Gold-twist Hackle with a purple body, whipped about with a red capon's feather.
5. To these we have, this month, a Flesh-fly; the dubbing of a black spaniel's fur, and blue wool mixed, and a gray wing.
6. Also another Little Flesh-fly; the body made of the whirl of a peacock's feather, and the wings of the gray feather of a drake.
7. We have then the Peacock-fly; the body and wing both made of the feather of that bird.
8. There is also the flying-ant, or Ant-fly, the dubbing of brown and red camlet mixed, with a light gray wing.
9. We have likewise a brown Gnat; with a very slender body of brown and violet camlet well mixed, and a light gray wing.
10. And another little Black Gnat; the dubbing of black mohair, and a white-gray wing.
11. As also a Green Grashopper; the dubbing of green and yellow wool mixed, ribbed over with green silk, and a red capon's feather over all.
12. And lastly, a little Dun Grashopper; the body slender, made of a dun camlet, and a dun hackle at the top.
JULY.
First, all the small flies that were taken in June, are also taken in this month.
1. We have then the Orange-fly; the dubbing of orange wool, and the wing of a black feather.
2. Also a little White Dun; the body made of white mohair, and the wings blue, of a heron's feather.
3. We have likewise this month a Wasp-fly; made either of a dark brown dubbing, or else the fur of a black cat's tail, ribbed about with yellow silk, and the wing of the gray feather of a mallard.
4. Another fly taken this month is a Black Hackle; the body made of the whirl of a peacock's feather, and a black hackle-feather on the top.
5. We have also another, made of a peacock's whirl without wings.
6. Another fly also is taken this month, called the Shell-fly; the dubbing of yellow-green Jersey-wool, and a little white hog's hair mixed, which I call the palm-fly: and do believe it is taken for a palm, that drops off the willows into the water; for this fly I have seen trouts take little pieces of moss, as they swam down the river; by which I conclude that the best way to hit the right colour, is to compare your dubbing with the moss, and mix the colours as near as you can.
7. There is also taken this month, a Black-blue Dun; the dubbing of the fur of a black rabbit mixed with a little yellow, the wings of the feather of a blue pigeon's wing.
AUGUST.
The same flies with July.
1. Then another Ant-fly; the dubbing of the black-brown hair of a cow, some red warped in for the tag of his tail, and a dark wing. A killing fly.
2. Next a fly called a Fern-fly; the dubbing of the fur of a hare's neck, that is, of the colour of fern or bracken, with a darkish-gray wing of a mallard's feather. A killer too.
3. Besides these we have a White Hackle; the body of white mohair, and warped about with a white hackle-feather; and this is assuredly taken for thistle-down.
4. We also have this month a Harry-long-legs, the body, made of bear's dun and blue wool mixed, and a brown hackle-feather over all.
Lastly, in this month all the same browns and duns are taken, that were taken in May.
SEPTEMBER.
This month the same flies are taken, that are taken in April.
1. To which I shall only add a Camel-brown Fly; the dubbing pulled out of the lime of a wall, whipped about with red silk, and a darkish-gray mallard's feather for the wing.
2. And one other, for which we have no name, but it is made of the black hair of a badger's skin, mixed with the yellow softest down of a sanded-hog.
OCTOBER.
The same flies are taken this month that were taken in March.
NOVEMBER.
The same flies that were taken in February, are taken this month also.
DECEMBER.
Few men angle with the fly this month, no more than they do in January: but yet, if the weather be warm,---as I have known it sometimes in my life to be, even in this cold country, where it is least expected,---then a brown that looks red in the hand, and yellowish betwixt your eye and the sun, will both raise and kill in a clear water, and free from snow-broth: but, at the best, 'tis hardly worth a man's labour.
And now, sir, I have done with fly-fishing, or angling at the top; excepting once more to tell you, that of all these,---and I have named you a great many very killing-flies,---none are fit to be compared with the drake and stone-fly, both for many and very great fish. And yet, there are some days that are by no means proper for the sport: and in a calm you shall not have near so much sport, even with daping, as in a whistling gale of wind, for two reasons, both because you are not then so easily discovered by the fish, and also because there are then but few flies that can lie upon the water; for where they have so much choice, you may easily imagine they will not be so eager and forward to rise at a bait, that both the shadow of your body, and that of your rod, nay, of your very line, in a hot, calm day, will, in spite of your best caution, render suspected to them: but even then, in swift streams, or by sitting down patiently behind a willow-bush, you shall do more execution than at almost any other time of the year with any other fly; though one may sometimes hit of a day, when he shall come home very well satisfied with sport with several other flies. But with these two, the green-drake and the stone-fly, I do verily believe I could, some days in my life, had I not been weary of slaughter, have loaden a lusty boy; and have sometimes, I do honestly assure you, given over upon the mere account of satiety of sport; which will be no hard matter to believe, when I likewise assure you that, with this very fly, I have, in this very river that runs by us, in three or four hours taken thirty, five and thirty, and forty, of the best trouts in the river. What shame and pity it is then, that such a river should be destroyed by the basest sort of people, by those unlawful ways of fire and netting in the night, and of damming, groping, spearing, hanging, and hooking, by day! which are now grown so common, that, though we have very good laws to punish such offenders, every rascal does it, for aught I see, impune.
To conclude, I cannot now, in honesty, but frankly tell you, that many of these flies I have named, at least so made as we make them here, will peradventure do you no great service in your southern rivers; and I will not conceal from you, but that I have sent flies to several friends in London, that for aught I could ever hear, never did any great feats with them; and, therefore, if you intend to profit by my instruction, you must come to angle with me here in the Peak: and so, if you please, let us walk up to supper; and to-morrow, if the day be windy, as our days here commonly are, 'tis ten to one but we shall take a good dish of fish for dinner.
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